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ALBANY, NY (AP) Governor Andrew Cuomo’s political star has been clouded by allegations he sexually harassed women and misled the public about COVID-19 deaths in nursing homes.
But will it hurt him with campaign donors?
Some of the Democrat’s most trusted political contributors, including unions, wealthy leaders and Democratic Party officials, have said they still plan to donate money to his expected fourth-term campaign.
The governor is planning a fundraiser of $ 10,000 per person on June 29 in New York. It will be one of his first big in-person events to raise funds for his campaign since the start of the coronavirus pandemic. He is also hosting a virtual fundraiser of $ 25 per person in July.
The full picture of whether the allegations are hurting Cuomo with backers may become clearer on July 15, when his campaign will have to disclose donations made since January.
At least some donors say they stay with him.
Yes I am, said Larry Rockefeller, the Republican nephew of former Governor Nelson Rockefeller and great-grandson of Standard Oil founder John D. Rockefeller. He has donated nearly $ 166,000 to Cuomo since 2009. Rockefeller cited Cuomo’s leadership during the pandemic, on the environment and on public works like the redevelopment of Penn Station and LaGuardia Airport.
We have due process in this country, Rockefeller said, referring to the allegations against Cuomo.
State and Federal government investigators investigate allegations Cuomo sexually harassed employees and other women, groped current assistant, illegally used state resources for 5.1 book deal million dollars and downplayed the number of COVID-19 deaths among nursing home residents to suggest New York’s crisis was not as severe as in other states.
Cuomo has denied any wrongdoing. He questioned the motives of his accusers and some of his investigators, including Attorney General Letitia James.
A request for comment was left with his campaign.
Polls suggest Cuomo has lost Democratic support this year, but he resisted numerous calls for his resignation last March from a majority of federal and state Democratic lawmakers.
Many Democratic politicians and leaders of New York institutions and businesses continued to appear with him at events.
Ed Christian, business manager of Local 1414B, a Flushing chapter of the International Union of Operating Engineers, said Cuomo was a tremendous advocate “that the union would continue to support financially.
Yes, absolutely, Christian said, citing, like Rockefeller, the reconstruction of Penn Station and LaGuardia Airport.
His construction projects that will allow us to feed our families, he said. Sections of the union, whose members operate heavy equipment on construction sites, have donated more than $ 145,000 to Cuomo’s campaigns in recent years.
Scott Rechler, a donor who was appointed by Cuomo to the board of directors of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority and as vice chairman of the Ports Authority of New York and New Jersey, plans to give back as well, according to his spokesperson. lyrics by David Garten.
He was unsure whether Rechler would withdraw his support if Cuomo’s investigations corroborated wrongdoing.
It’s a bit speculative, Garten said. We have no idea what the report says. Now, see what he says and go from there.
Cuomo had a $ 16.8 million campaign war chest until 2021, built over the years by donors like real estate titan Dan Tishman, hedge fund manager James Simons, heir to Walmart Jim Walton, fertilizer mogul turned investor Alexander Rovt and Estee Lauder mogul William and Leonard Lauder.
Simons, Walton, Rovt and the Two Lauders did not respond to repeated requests for comment on whether they would continue to give. Tishman, whose construction company won a $ 35 million state contract last year, declined to comment through a spokesperson.
James, the attorney general, did not say when she expects her investigative team to complete their investigation into Cuomo’s treatment of women. She has pledged to publish a public report when their work is completed.
The State Assembly committee is also investigating whether there are grounds for removing Cuomo. Brooklyn federal prosecutors, meanwhile, are examining how the Cuomo administration mishandled data related to deaths in New York nursing homes.
Cuomo’s longtime ally and state Democratic Party chairman Jay Jacobs called the sexual misconduct allegations against Cuomo heartbreaking in early March, but he also called on party members to stay their trial until March. to have James’ office complete their investigation.
Assuming these results don’t cause a cataclysmic result, and if the governor then chooses to stand for re-election, I guess most if not all of the people who have been with him before will be with him again, Jacobs said in an interview this week.
The nation’s largest union for real estate workers, SEIU 32BJ, which has paid Cuomo $ 95,000 through its American Dream Fund over the past five years, has not ruled out contributing to Cuomo’s reelection campaign. .
Union spokeswoman Carolina Gonzlez said she had focused on the New York mayor’s primary and did not plan to make any decisions on the governors’ race until the end of the year.
Cuomos is still governor, and he will continue to be governor until he is no longer, for whatever reason, she said. The ongoing investigations are still not completed. There is really nothing to say until this process is complete.
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